Watch the Thrilling First Trailer for 'The Ides of March'

You gotta admire George Clooney. The talented writer-director-producer-actor can easily move from comedy to thriller to socially conscious drama in the wink of an eye -- and do it with aplomb and integrity.

His latest -- 'The Ides of March,' which he stars in, directed and co-wrote -- is a political thriller that takes place during the frantic last days before a heavily contested Ohio presidential primary, when an up-and-coming campaign press secretary (Ryan Gosling) finds himself involved in a political scandal that threatens to upend his candidate's (Clooney) shot at the presidency. The film, which opens Oct. 7, also stars Marisa Tomei, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Evan Rachel Wood, Paul Giamatti, Jeffrey Wright and Max Minghella. Sony on Wednesday released a poster for the film and later Wednesday evening posted a trailer to the Internet. Check them out after the jump.